An announcement by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) on the occasion of the International Child Day 2016 states that, for the first time since the creation of the state in 1948, Israeli Jewish women’s overall fertility rate has matched that of Israeli Arab women: 3.13 children per woman on average. This means that the Jewish demographic trend is on the upswing, while the Arab numbers are slowing down. Kindly share this by the Thanksgiving table when the issue of the “demographic time bomb” rears its predictable head.
The announcement shared a fascinating list of facts and figures on the heartwarming topic of Israeli children. Such as that by the end of 2015 there were 2.798 million children ages 0 to 17 living in Israel, constituting 33% of the population. In Jerusalem children are 40% of the general population, in Haifa 23% and in Tel Aviv only 21%.
Out of Israel’s children, 1.996 million are Jews (71.3%), 718 thousand are Arab (25.7%) and the rest, 84 thousand children (3%), are neither.
By the end of 2015, the average number of children under age 17 per household was 2.4. The largest number of children per household was in Beit Shemesh — 3.8, B’nei B’rak — 3.4, and Jerusalem — 3. The lowest number of children per household was in Bat Yam — 1.8.
Here’s another heartwarming bit of data: a whopping 92% of Israeli children live with both parents; only 8% — 210 thousand children — live with one parent, 92% of them with their mother.
How about child brides? In 2014 865 girls under the age of 17 got married, 88% of them Muslim. Then, in 2015, 216 girls under age 17 gave birth, out of whom 248 were Muslim and 58 Jewish. For 7% of those it was not their first birth.
In 2015, 200 thousand children lived in homes where no one was employed, 5.5% of the Jewish population, 14% of the Arab population.
In the Jewish year 5774 (2013/14) 10,673 criminal files were opened against children ages 12 to 18.
In 79 thousand households children were the victims of theft, violence or threat of violence, sexual violation, and cyber crime.
Economics: the average net income for a household with children was 1.3 higher than a household with no children — $55,135.32 annually, compared with $42,539.52. However, expenses for the households with children was 1.4 higher, $45,831.6 vs. $32,545.44.